Majestic said it had experimented with allowing single-bottle purchases at some stores over the past few months and the change had proved popular with new and existing customers.

English wine pioneers rush to start UK vineyards

Read more

In a move towards clearer pricing, if customers buy any six bottles of wine or spirits before Christmas they will get at least 10% off and up to 33% off. Majestic will also offer free delivery and glass hire and a full refund if customers are not satisfied with a product.

Abandoning the minimum purchase is a big move for Majestic, which sold wines by the case when it was launched in 1980 from a warehouse in Wood Green, north London. When the minimum purchase was halved to six bottles in 2009 it was popular but Gormley said the rule was out of date amid fierce competition.

He said: “Our customers were telling us that they wanted simpler, clearer pricing, and an end to the six-bottle minimum. There are now no barriers to shopping at Majestic, the pricing structure is very straightforward and I’m sure our customers will see this as a great move.”

Gormley took over running Majestic in April when the company bought his Naked Wines online business after poor Christmas trading capped a run of disappointing results. Majestic has been under pressure from supermarkets using wine promotions to attract customers from each other and fight off the German discounters Aldi and Lidl.